Every day brings forth hundreds, if not thousands, of newly uncovered cybersecurity threats. With global cybercrime costs projected to hit $10.5 trillion annually by 2025, cybercriminals show no signs of retreat.
The silver lining? As threats escalate, so does our ability to identify and combat them, ensuring data remains shielded.
Cybersecurity frameworks lay a crucial foundation in the fight for data protection. Moreover, risk assessments based on these frameworks can help identify system weaknesses to bolster defenses further.
For over 25 years, WEBIT Services has built effective cybersecurity procedures for hundreds of clients in the greater Chicago area.
By reading this article, you will learn two pivotal cybersecurity frameworks (CIS and NIST), their significance, and how they lay the groundwork for comprehensive risk assessments.
NIST and CIS Frameworks: An Introduction
In response to the escalating cyber threats, experts in information technology collaborated to forge cybersecurity frameworks, setting the gold standard for IT practices. The NIST and CIS frameworks are pivotal in guiding cybersecurity and compliance practices, ensuring robust defense mechanisms.
National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (more commonly known as NIST) created its NIST cybersecurity framework.
Established in 2013, NIST's framework outlines five fundamental steps for data protection:
- Identify
- Protect
- Detect
- Respond
Center for Internet Security (CIS)
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (more commonly known as NIST) created its NIST cybersecurity framework in 2013.
It covers not only cybersecurity but also compliance standards like HIPAA, encapsulated in three steps:
- Inventory
- Track
- Correct
However, the CIS framework is currently a total of 18 Controls that break down each process used to "identify,” "track," and "correct" threats.
Why Follow A Security Framework?
Though the terminology may vary, NIST and CIS frameworks share a common core: instructing IT security to identify, protect, detect, respond, and recover.
They both instruct IT security to:
- Identify or Inventory hardware, software, and practices in use.
- Protect the system through various tools and practices.
- Detect or Track
- Respond to or Correct detected threats.
- Recover system functionality and data loss, if possible.
Failure to adhere to a framework leaves crucial security elements overlooked, exposing organizations to preventable risks.
- Missing the Identify step means that missed hardware is not protected, potentially exposing the entire system.
- Missing the Protect step means the system is exposed and vulnerable to cyberattacks.
- Missing the Detect step means viruses and malicious activity go unnoticed.
- Missing the Respond step means viruses and malicious activity are not addressed or removed.
- Missing the Recover step means that data and functionality are lost.
While there is flexibility regarding which tools, programs, and strategies can be used within the framework, an official framework must be followed for maximum effectiveness.
If your company is not following an official cybersecurity framework, you are missing critical security elements and are exposed to preventable risks.
IT Risk Assessments: An Integral Shield
IT providers use a chosen security framework to conduct regular risk assessments, categorizing vulnerabilities as low, medium, high, or critical risks.
These assessments provide a snapshot of an organization's security status at that point in time.
Frequent assessments are recommended, balancing thorough risk addressing and user awareness.
IT providers usually recommend quarterly assessments. This timeframe gives enough time to thoroughly address identified risks while keeping users aware but not overwhelmed.
Risk assessments performed more often do not give enough time to execute projects that address current risk priorities and see improvements successfully. Still, assessments performed less frequently leave gaps in risk awareness, creating preventable vulnerabilities.
However, if there has been a significant system change (for instance, an influx of 50 new employees who all need new computers), a risk assessment should be performed before the 90-day benchmark. This will help locate and address any new weaknesses and, in turn, will help protect your system amid modifications.
Navigating the Risk Assessment Process
A risk assessment following a framework will:
- Identify your system's hardware, software, and IT resources.
- Assess what protections (endpoint protection, cybersecurity practices, etc.) are in place.
- Detect new risks (malware, aging or failing hardware, system updates, etc.)
- Recommend responsesto each identified risk.
Failure to follow a framework results in security knowledge gaps and avoidable vulnerabilities. Assessments become a strategic tool for improvement, enabling organizations to:
- Identify at-risk software and hardware.
- Spot new threats introduced by cybercriminals.
- Highlight weak cybersecurity practices for targeted training.
Recommended responses may include updating software, replacing older hardware, removing malicious software, and evaluating cybersecurity practices and habits of the organization.
Next Steps for Using a Framework in Your Risk Assessment
As each framework might articulate differently, its core steps:
- Identify
- Protect
- Detect
- Respond
- Recover
Security frameworks serve as the foundation for quarterly risk assessments. Following these frameworks and performing regular assessments keeps organizations vigilant against evolving IT risks.
If your last risk assessment is beyond 90 days, ask your IT provider or internal IT team to perform one ASAP. The cost of neglecting one could be steep. Preventable risks could lead to an IT disaster and significant data or financial loss.
Talk to your IT provider about your next risk assessment and ask if these assessments follow an endorsed framework like NIST or CIS. If they do not, it might be time to look for a new provider.
For over 25 years, WEBIT Services has utilized NIST and CIS security frameworks to help clients build strategies and protect their data.
If you’re not ready to talk to our team of experts, you may be interested in these other articles on IT security:
